According to the specs that have surfaced on the Xbox Surface the tablet will sport a 7" 1280x720 screen, SD card support and Bluetooth/Wifi radios. There is also indications that the Surface will have four USB ports, an ethernet port, and HDMI port.

Note when reading the specs: there are TWO devices, one tablet and one "stationary". Don't confuse the two.

Again, we don't know if the Xbox Surface is what we'll see at today's Microsoft's media event but it does look like an interesting device. What makes this all a bit more interesting is LiveSide has attained a second document that has the same Xbox Surface branding, corroborating the story.

Hit the break for page two of the leaked specs and take note that under Tablet Device (Controller) specs there mention of "Kinect Workloads". Could the Xbox Surface have Kinect motion technologies built in?

You nailed it. All this speculation and nothing to actually confirm any thing. I look forward to the announcement and hopefully it will be something really big, but we won't know until later this evening.

More of a comment then it is a question but isn't it strange how no OS is listed? What MS whitepaper have they ever had that didn't list what the hardware was running on? I think tonight's conference is about a ridiculous reconfiguring of the entertainment division.

Microsoft has a product called Surface, and it's a table-size computer. I have my doubts about the wisdom of naming a new product with a combination of two existing products, expecially when one was about really big, and a tablet would be about 7-10 inches. Not so sure about calling everything XBOX, either. Hopefully, they'll know where to stop.

Definitely a lot of hype. I wonder if this potential device is the paired down Xbox 360 that's been rumored. Basically, an "Xbox" without capability of playing retail games and a focus on Xbox Live media.

I hope this is not the tablet that is gonna be announced today. I am really excited about a true Microsoft W8 tablet, but 7,0"?? C'mon, I at least need a 12" with 1280x1920 pixels. So please Microsoft, give us a real iPad competitor!

And he must be freaking out, especially because after viewing where he is on the MSFT orgchart, he doesn't seem to be anywhere near the divisions that would be dealing with this product.

Not saying it's not legit (I can't honestly tell if it is or not), but anyone can download the Microsoft logo, Segoe font and spend some time in Word crafting a document that looks somewhat credible. As I mentioned further down though, the 12 cores is kinda odd and highly unlikely to be seen on a device other than a server.

That's not the Windows 8 logo and if this is XBox branded then it wouldn't sport a Windows logo either. If this thing is bogged down with usb and ethernet ports it's going to be chunky.
There are more questions over the processor (not a mobile unit, battery would last 5 minutes).
I think a lot of people are going to be really disappointed later on (although I hope I am very wrong). This is probably announcing XTV which will likely be US only for the foreseeable future.

I think these are specs for something more complex than a Tablet.. I think this will be the evolution of the old "Suface" product...
it seems that is a server (not so powerful server, but 2 cpu, 4 gb ram... ) with up to four "controllers" (the tablet)...
or a console, with WiiU style controllers... but I don't think so...

If they're releasing some sort of tablet, I dobut it would have the UI of Windows Media Center, which is what it looks like is displayed in the image. This is probably a Windows 8 tablet with a screenshot of MC.

Here is my quess. "IF" it's a tablet then it will be a 7in media consumption device. It will be Xbox branded and will have smart glass. The tablet will be marketed to compete with the WiiU controller and the PS Vita. Xbox Surface would be the perfect name for said device.

Echoing excalibur1814's point:MSDN : Guidelines for scaling to screens
The minimum screen resolution to enable all of Metro's functionality including snapped & fill views is 1366 x 768. It would be foolhardy of Microsoft to launch a W8 tablet that doesn't meet their own minimum specs.

10k rpm drive? 4 usb ports? ethernet? How on earth would you fit that on a 7" device? I have a bb playbook and as thick as it is, im sure adding all this would likely add at least half an inch to it.
And unless Microsoft discovered some next gen power source, this thing will likely have a 2 hour battery life.
If these specs are legitimate, i dont think it would be a 'tablet' at all, it would probably be considered a 'mini table' (ala the MS Surface Table).

Perhaps it's not a tablet at all. What if it's a brand spanking new WP8 device? I would much rather see this. Because soon we will be seeing all sorts of Win8 Tablets. Or if Nokia is making it for them..Still I rather see a WP8 deivce today.

Christ people, this is not JUST a tablet. The spec sheet outlines a stationary device and a tablet control. Daniel, can you please modifiy the heading so that everyone that posts isn't blindly thinking these specs are all pure tablet.

I'll make my guess at this, but this sounds like a new console that has a tablet as an accessory. Given the current Xbox 360 uses a multicore Power processor this makes a lot of sense that this is just a more powerful version, same with the GPU. If this is a new console it's going to make the WiiU look like a toy.

It also means Microsoft is trying to maintain compatibility between their consoles.

And if this device is real... Then it is basically a portable Xbox that can be plugged into any tv? So, this will cost what, $500 minimum? For a gaming console that is a secondary device. This all sounds very unlikely, and just not like Microsoft. Why would this not have been revealed at E3?

People, read the specs carefully. These are the specs of the next XBOX. It will accompany a 7" tablet device. The stationary device (the XBOX itself) features multicore CPU's and a BD-ROM drive. How hard is it to understand. It has nothing to do with the Microsoft tablet being announced today. Besides, the new XBOX won't be released for ages.

Yea, I have to agree with you. This sounds like a new console with a touch screen tablet as a controller. The I think of it that way the more this is sounding fake to me. I noticed also that none of this mentions WIRELESS networks as in wireless a/b/g/n but it supports 22.2 surround sound??? That set up is so rare you never see anyone mention it.

FYI: 22.2 surround "is the surround sound component of Ultra High Definition Television (a new television standard with 16 times the pixel resolution of HDTV). It has been developed by NHK Science & Technical Research Laboratories. It uses 24 speakers (including two subwoofers) arranged in three layers."

While I agree that the announcement today has nothing to do with a "next gen" Xbox (that would have been shown at E3), I read that IGN was invited which leads me to believe it is related to Xbox in some fashion, whether it's new media partnerships/functionality or a redesigned/paired down Xbox 360 with a tablet device to control it.
I can't see Microsoft releasing something that won't be compatible with its existing #1 selling console, or something that does a whole lot above and beyond what the existing 360 does. We all know that SmartGlass is on the way...perhaps this is an official Xbox brand "tablet" more in line with the Wii U's controller?
Speculation is fun, but can't wait until this is all over at 3:30. So many rumors at this point, could be a colossal fail (a Yammer annoucement for example).

If memory serves me correctly, it was announced a week or two before E3 with the full reveal at E3. Same with Kinect, where they had a unveiling a day or so before and the full reveal at the press conference. It would make little sense for them to show the next gen system after E3 and talking about how the Xbox 360 is the focus for 2012. They would have shown it before and then revealed all, this is consistent with how they've handled gaming hardware announcements recently.
Bottom line - there's no way this is a next-gen Xbox. If it's gaming related which I suspect it is, I think it'll be a media-focused tablet/set top box or a tablet similar to the Wii U's in gaming functionality (buttons, analog sticks, etc).

If this leak is legit it is absolutely a gaming console. It has at least twice the power of the 360. It uses a PPC CPU and a custom ATI GPU, same as the current xbox (hello backwards compatibility). It also has a BD drive that won't play movies. Why would you put a BD into a media focused STB and NOT have it play movies?
There's no guarantee that this is what the big announcement today is though. It could very well be a strategic leak by MS to get everyone talking and ramp up the buzz and anticipation about whatever they're presenting this afternoon.

This is all fine and dandy but how does Nokia factor in? They've been posting cryptic pics on their Facebook page all weekend, referencing today's date. They're either invloved or having a separate announcement of their own.
(examples: http://on.fb.me/MJ6GbR , http://on.fb.me/MJ6I3q , and http://on.fb.me/MJ6IAk)
Bing too, but they'd be involved in any Microsoft Product.

Check this out...http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ex:el (see the artwork there and the pic on Nokia's FB page) album by 808 State
another pic there shows location Hawaii.. area code 808..
its related to Pureview 808 could be unrelated to the MS meeting or could be Pureview coming to US.

Call me skeptic but the IBM power 7 doesn't seem to me a CPU for a device that will be powered by battery. There is no indication that this CPU could last more than a few minutes and I don't see IBM coming up with a surprise battery efficient version of it all of a sudden. Therefore, this CPU can't be on a tablet and these specs are fake.

If you had bothered to actually read the spec sheets as well as the rest of the thread you would know that the Power 7 CPU is for a stationary device that is also shown. In other words there are TWO devices being shown on those spec sheets. A stationary device(console?) and tablet.

Assuming this is legit, it is ABSOLUTELY some sort of a game console.
Look at the specs on the stationary device:

12 core CPU (PowerPC-based, same as the current xbox)

4GB RAM (or 5, depending on which sheet you go with)

Support for up to 4 wireless game controllers (same as the current Xbox)

GPU with 1.4 GB of memory. Core specs suggest something close to current top of the line Radeon GPUs.

BD-ROM drive but notes that optical discs for movies will not be supported. I.e. it will only work for data (games).

Support for 4 wireless tablet controllers. No indication if these are the controllers referenced above or separate.

Then look at the tablet:

Small screen (7")

288 MB of RAM

BT/WiFi

Custom IBM engine for "scale-out workloads" (this appears to have to do with a remote processor doing most of the work, like on web apps or, ahem, OnLive).

Custom ARM engine for Kinect workloads.

My prediction: This is for a new game console. It will support tablet controllers (like the Wii-U but more than just one). It will also have some type of support for an on-live type system where the game is played on the console and viewed on the controller. You would, presumably, also be able to consume media that way.

I was puzzled by the amount of memory on the tablet, 288 MB is a rather odd amount. Then I realized that 256+32=288. So I'm guessing that it has 256 MB of main memory and another 32 MB dedicated to something else, video or a subprocessor perhaps?

Finally. Apple failed to realize that the exhausted heat of refrigerator can be used to heat the toast.
Did you know: For every 1 watt of electricity, there's about 3 watt of cooling in refrigerator and 4 watt of exhaust heat.

The document looks good until you reach the storage. As someone who has worked in Storage since 1999 there is NO way the tablet will have a 10k RPM SCSI disk. Too expensive and way too much heat. Thermals would be off the scale.. Also, SCSI is dead and replaced by SAS. This is either fake or the creator of the doc is clueless.. :-/